It has been circulating for a while now that Travis Scott will be involved in the first Raw on Netflix. That begs the question of how Travis Scott in WWE could turn out.
Sure, he was well-received at Fanatics Fest and is clearly a fan of the product. This will not be a rerun of Snooki at WrestleMania or Jeremey Piven’s promotion of “SummerFest” most likely. Still, there have been numerous A through Z listers that have been involved with the titans of sports entertainment.
It wasn’t until fairly recently that those collaborations started working out like they had in the early days. How should Travis Scott make his mark in wrestling and stand above the average celebrity?
Make a Career Shift Like Logan Paul
This is far and away the least likely option for Scott at this point. Almost all of the celebrities who have jumped into a more extended WWE contract have been former athletes. Ronda Rousey is the most notable of them at this point.
Logan Paul is the most prominent exception to that rule, and even he was a self-proclaimed boxer first. Even if, like many of his critics, you don’t believe his past athletic accomplishments merit a WWE contract, his run with the company speaks volumes.
Let’s get this out of the way now: this writer, like many fans online, doesn’t particularly like Logan Paul. That is an opinion, though, and an opinion plus seventy-five cents isn’t even worth a candy bar at a vending machine.
I think it’s safe to say @LoganPaul shocked the world with his abilities as a guest at #WrestleMania … just imagine what he’ll do as a @WWE Superstar. Congratulations and welcome! https://t.co/GyTMAzBIau
— Triple H (@TripleH) June 30, 2022
What is not opinion is that Paul is quite good at professional wrestling. His matches have all exceeded expectations. Significant figures in the industry have granted him heaping praise, and he has garnered attention from the company.
Whether all of it is good is less clear. If Scott believes he has an athletic prowess similar to Paul’s and jumps into the ring full-time, he could really make an impact. That is a tricky needle to thread though, which is why Paul is really the only person who has done it.
A Childhood Dream Like Bad Bunny
When you are a big celebrity, wrestling doesn’t need to be all or nothing. You can go the way of Logan Paul or even Pat McAfee, who is employed by WWE whenever football isn’t on television. He got the job as a commentator after working his first match, which was a massive success in NXT.
A young enough celebrity, Scott is only 33, can train for and perform in a high-profile match as a one-off or even just on occasion. Unlike the full-time workers who really need to be athletes or adjacent to start, other types of A-listers have made their wrestling dreams come true.
Most notably, and recently, is Bad Bunny. He parlayed his international acclaim into a spot on the WrestleMania 37 card. However, this wasn’t just a cameo; it was a story.
Bad Bunny got involved in his own feud, which carried on for weeks. He even held a title in WWE. Yes, the 24/7 championship does still count. That alone made him a fun departure from the Rob Gronkowski, Colin Jost, and Michael Che’s of the world.
Then the match happened, and he did awesome. He was fit enough to train and trained enough to impress. After that, he started to show up randomly. WWE even built a PLE around his fighting on his home island of Puerto Rico.
So what if Scott can’t commit or even handle an intense schedule? Just by dedicating some time to train in his hometown of Huston, perhaps with Bad Bunny supporter Booker T., he could get his PLE after kicking off a feud on the first Netflix Raw.
When a celebrity commits to it, they can usually get the crowd invested in their match.
Travis Scott in WWE Can Embrace His Lane Like Sexxy Redd
Most celebrities have some skill or talent that launched them. Travis Scott in WWE should consider this when planning his appearance. Anyone not aware, Scott is a rapper, recording artist, and a generally interesting celebrity.
His style has been deemed surreal, and he makes heavy use of imaging, vocal distortions, and editing to create his signature sound. Could WWE utilize his talent and, more importantly, his style right now? Most definitely, yes.
There are plenty of reasons he would want to lean those spaces for his appearance. Most important among them, a fellow artist has done this just this year.
🗣️ SEXY BOYYYYYYYY@SexyyRed314_ and @ShawnMichaels are the duo we never knew we needed 🙌 pic.twitter.com/ycSy447sZU
— WWE NXT (@WWENXT) May 29, 2024
Sexxy Red on NXT was a head-scratcher. Apart from being a fan, it made little sense why WWE would want a musical artist on their developmental show. Then, she made her NXT debut, and it was instantly apparent.
She performed technically and had several backstage interactions and social media viral moments. Red matched the NXT brand to perfection; she was young, fun, and exuded energy. Her aura is that of a party, of youth, and the popular side of internet culture.
That is what NXT tried to embody, especially under Shawm Michaels. Scott isn’t necessarily quite the party person Red is. His style is darker, somewhat unnatural, and dystopian. His mythos, too, read as more intense.
If WWE can find a superstar, perhaps a family of them, that fits that vibe, his appearance could go viral as a perfect bit of brand synergy, just like Sexxy Red.
Go Big like Jon Stewart
Travis Scott in WWE is likely a one-time deal as far as appearing on their show goes. Wrestlers know far better than their outside celebrity counterparts that you need to maximize your minutes to make an impact.
You do not need a long time to go big time. Scott may be wise to take his appearance on what will be an undoubtedly big show and use it for one extremely memorable moment to open or close the broadcast.
He wouldn’t be the only star to do that and get a positive reception from fans. The formerly retired host of The Daily Show, Jon Stewart, had a particularly good SummerSlam moment that helped cement two stars from two different eras.
Like Scott, Stewart’s involvement with the promotion started well before the appearance. Then champion, in his first reign, no less, Seth Rollins began to beef with him.
It was online, and there was even a brief appearance on the Daily Show at the time. Stewart appeared during Rollins’s title defense against John Cena to exact his revenge, and he hit Cena with a chair. His betrayal of Cena and his provision of aid to Rollins was very quickly explained in a way that made sense, too.
Stewart was a lifelong fan and didn’t want Cena to beat Ric Flair’s championship record. He took an Attitude Adjustment for his actions, but it was a swerve that furthered the story, built upon the character of John Cena, and shocked audiences. A creative mind like Scott, even with just one night, can come up with a moment just as memorable.
Travis Scott in WWE Needs to Make Sense
Although all the scenarios above are remarkably different, they worked very well and improved the show. There are a few connecting threads that Travis Scott needs to consider to ensure his appearance follows suit. First, they all commit to the show and have a good time.
The people who didn’t want to be there shouldn’t have been there. This goes for every guest host of Raw ever. Secondly, be a fan or do some research. We can only speculate on the fandom of the four success stories or the handful of other stars in recent times that didn’t make fans groan.
They all seemed at least knowledgeable about the stars and programming. This leads us to the last point: have a reason.
Yes, being a famous celebrity is the real reason all of these people got involved. Travis Scott in WWE needs to acknowledge that this last point is the most important.
Fans who want to see Scott do his thing, consume Logan Paul’s pranks, or party with Sexxy Red can do that elsewhere, and most of them will. Many of their fans will check it out, but most won’t.
So once you book them, you have the new people hooked, and now you need to keep everyone on board with quality programming. In wrestling, that means compelling narratives or extraordinary physical moves, ideally both.
A creative, borderline auteur of a performer like Travis Scott can really get into it. When he shows up on Raw, they ought to let him.
More From LWOS Pro Wrestling
Header photo – WWE – Stay tuned to the Last Word on Pro Wrestling for more on this and other stories from around the world of wrestling as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world. You can check out an almost unlimited array of WWE content on the WWE Network and Peacock.
